‘Hero’ Russian soldier calls down air strike on himself

A RUSSIAN soldier has pulled an action hero move — calling down an air strike on himself after being discovered by Islamic State in Syria.

AFPMarch 29, 20165:26am

Syrian soldiers sit on top of a tank during fighting between government forces and Islamic State group militants in Palmyra, Syria, on Sunday. Picture: SANA via APSource:AP

A RUSSIAN soldier has pulled an action hero move — calling down an air strike on himself after being discovered by Islamic State in Syria.

The special forces officer was killed near Palmyra, according to a military representative at the Russian base in Syria.

“An officer of Russian special operations forces was killed near Palmyra while carrying out a special task to direct Russian air strikes at Islamic State group targets,” the unnamed representative told Russian news agencies on Thursday, without giving the date of the incident.

“The officer was carrying out a combat task in Palmyra area for a week, identifying crucial IS targets and passing exact coordinates for strikes with Russian planes,” he said.

“The officer died as a hero, he drew fire onto himself after being located and surrounded by terrorists,” he said.

Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoi informs reporters in Moscow of an air strike during the attack of Russian warplanes in Syria. Picture: AP Photo/Alexander ZemlianichenkoSource:AP

Moscow has been tight-lipped about having any soldiers on the ground throughout its campaign in Syria, which began on September 30.

Last week, IS-linked media said that five Russian special forces were killed near Palmyra, publishing pictures from their mobile phones and a video showing a bloodied corpse.

However Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov at the time denied that Russian officers were participating in the advance on Palmyra, saying that “the advance is carried out by contingents of the Syrian army”.

Smoke rises from a gas station from fighting between government forces and Islamic State group militants in Palmyra, Syria, on Sunday. Picture: SANA via APSource:AP